


Eventuality

by IntelligentAirhead



Category: Persona 3, Persona 4
Genre: Character Death, F/F, Gen, Multi, Other, autistic characters, nonbinary characters - Freeform
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-06-21
Updated: 2016-07-26
Packaged: 2018-07-16 12:06:52
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 5,404
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7267489
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/IntelligentAirhead/pseuds/IntelligentAirhead
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A collection of Persona drabbles. The pertinent relationships and circumstances (Read: AU) of each chapter will be noted in the chapter summaries</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Plain and Simple

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt was: "Yukichie & things you said under the stars and in the grass"

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The title's supposed to be a pun off of flood plain.

The first time that Chie and Yukio met, Yukiko had been covered in mud and laughing.

No, Chie thought. That wasn’t technically true. The first time they had met, if one considered first meetings to be the first time one person saw another, Yukiko had been walking down the streets of the shopping district, following after her mother. 

Chie had watched them, her rubber ball squeezed tight in her arms, and allowed herself a brief moment to imagine what it’d be like to wear fancy clothes and kimonos every day, instead of just during holidays or festivals. 

Later, she figured out that Yukiko did wear clothes outside of formalwear, but she still found herself staring at her in confusion for the first few weeks that they shared a homeroom.

None of those times counted, though. The weeks of class, and the day on the sidewalk weren’t really meetings. The Yukiko she had seen then was just a face and a name.

Chie met the real Yukiko on the Samegawa flood plain, rolling in the muddy, wet grass with a St. Bernard puppy.

It took less than a day for them to draw up the joint custody agreement (with no less than three kanji that certainly did not mean the things the girls intended them to mean) in the really good calligraphy brushes whose temporary absence Yukiko’s mother pretended not to notice. It took thrice that amount of time for the girls to find a notary.

Once they had convinced Kanji to sign the form– Yes, they were sure this was legal. No, he wasn’t going to go to jail for fraud. Yes, he had implied visitation rights and could see the dog whenever he wanted because duh, who else was going to be the godparent– Chie had looked down at the paper, looked back up at Yukiko, and bit the inside of her cheek.

“Does this mean we’re married?” She asked, as if the question had just occurred to me, and she hadn’t been considering it since before they drew up the paperwork. 

Yukiko folded her hands in front of her. “No,” she said, after a moment, “I think we would have to be much older in order to negotiate the legal terms of a marriage.” She inclined her head. “Besides, my mother says that the rise in divorce rates is due to hasty marriages. We would need to now each other for several years at least, I think.”

Chie had nodded, and said, “Yeah! That makes a lot of sense,” although she really wasn’t sure what Yukiko meant, and the other kids pretended to get married all the time. Still, Yukiko seemed to know what she was talking about, so Chie filed away the information for later. Then, spotting another child’s backpack, she began to enthuse about Phoenix Ranger Featherman R. 

 

* * *

 

Years and years later, Chie and Yukiko sprawled across the flood plain, staring up at the sky. They were too tired to move. Training in the TV World was always intense, but they hadn’t expected so many of the shadows to pulse red that day. Several times, Chie had worried that they might not all make it out.

Chie was staring up at Cygnus and wondering if pointing out the bird constellation would make Yukiko laugh when she felt something warm brush against her hand.  

It was ridiculous, Chie thought, that Yukiko was capable of reaching out and finding Chie’s hand without taking her eyes off of the stars. 

“It’s funny,” Yukiko said, her whisper piercing in the wake of the previous silence. “As much as I want to escape Inaba, I feel like this is the only place I’d ever want to escape to.”

Chie didn’t know whether she was hurt or happy. She squeezed Yukiko’s hand. “I can see you setting up shop here. Just let me know when to clear out of your space, and be careful when it gets rainy.”

Yukiko frowned. “I wouldn’t want to be here without you,” she said. 

Feeling as if she would burst, Chie searched for anything, anything she could say.

“Remember when I asked you if we were married?”

Her brain hated her, and she should have been more specific about conversational topics, Chie realised. 

Yukiko, however, didn’t seem too disconcerted. She hummed, still looking at the stars. “Do you suppose we could get Kanji to be our notary again?”

“I don’t think he’s actually certified for that,” Chie answered automtically. Then her brain caught up with her mouth. “Wait, what?”

“For our marriage license,” Yukiko said, as if she was discussing something as self-evident as the weather. “I believe our stipulations involved knowing each other for a longer period of time, and being adults. We have several years to go, of course,” she added, “but I don’t believe that should be an issue.”

“Wait,” Chie said, scrabbling at the grass and sitting up. She couldn’t keep the edge of hysterical disbelief out of her voice. “Shouldn’t there be like, actual dating before we start discussing marriage?”

Yukiko laughed. “You proposed to me four days after we met, Chie.” She hummed. “Although, you’re right.” She sat up.

“Satanoka Chie, would you like to date me?”

Chie felt herself turning red, and cradled her face in her hands. “Oh my god,” she said.

Yukiko patted her back. “You can say no, you know. We already signed the custody papers.”

“Oh my god,” Chie reiterated. “You’re such a nerd. God, you’re such a nerd, Yukiko.” 

Yukiko nodded. “True.”

“And yes, I will date you anyway. Or because of it. Oh my god.”

Smiling, Yukiko settled back into the grass. “I’m glad.” Then, after a moment, “Draco’s visible tonight.” She pointed. “I wonder if stars can have dragon kicks. I would suppose so, since it is a dragon, but you have to wonder.”

Still flushed, Chie rolled onto her belly and realised that she should have made the damn bird joke earlier.


	2. That's The Spirit

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this one was "naoto + souji paranormal investigators (ft ghost yosk + fox)"

“–and the flickering lights are likely due to the high amount of traffic, especially considering the cable car that passes by regularly. Other residents of the neighbourhood have reported similar problems, which is unsurprising considering the age of this community.” Naoto flipped their notebook closed. “That about covers it. You may now proceed to ignore my input and antagonise the ghosts that may or may not live here.”

Souji pouted up at them from where they were squatting on the floor. “I never ignore your input,” they said.

“You spent the entire time I was talking booping that cat on the nose.”

“That doesn’t mean I wasn’t listening.” Souji scratched behind the cat’s ears. It began to purr. “Do you think we can ask for her as payment?”

“We can’t take someone's cat in exchange for an exorcism. It sets a bad example, it would make the owner’s upset, and we need money for food.”

Souji picked the cat up, prompting it to mewl in protest. “But look at her. She’s so pretty! And she sees ghosts!”

“According to the homeowners,” Naoto qualified. “Who aren’t exactly experts.”

“And you are?” An unfamiliar voice filled the space of the room. 

Naoto stiffened. “Any chance you learnt to throw your voice and alter its pitch in the last two days?”

Souji shook their head, and Naoto groaned. Clutching their hand to their fce, they turned.

Sure enough, a ghost with dyed brown hair stood in the doorway. The fox at their side was unexpected, however.

“Fine,” Naoto said. “You win this one. I’ll buy dinner tonight.”

Souji beamed. “I told you this one was haunted!”

“You can’t blame me for being skeptical,” Naoto said. “It’s been five months since the last confirmed sighting.”

“Which makes victory even sweeter,” Souji exclaimed. They waved at the ghost. “Thanks for helping me win a bet!”

The ghost blinked and gaped for a moment before responding. “You’re, uh, welcome?”


	3. There's a Vanessa Hudgens Song That Everyone Makes Fun of But Has Probably Still Cried About That Perfectly Encapsulates This Kind of Situation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt for this one was "Souyo: things you said with too many miles between us"

Whenever Yosuke’s phone vibrated, he would play a game that he referred to as Cats, Music, or Obscure Inedible Item. It was point of pride that he had grown progressively better at the game as time wore on. It also grew increasingly depressing the longer he thought about it.

He was getting better at the game because Souji was actually using their phone for once because they only ever used their phone out of necessity, and being two hundred kilometers away from all of their friends made it a necessary compromise. Ergo, Yosuke was only getting better at the game because Souji was really fucking far away.

It was for the best that Yosuke didn’t dwell on it for long.

Instead, he looked down at his phone and crowed because he had earned yet another point in the competition against– his phone? Souji? Himself? 

It didn’t matter. The point was, he was winning. 

Surprisingly enough, the Music category had more tallies than the Cats. They were harder to lure out in the city, apparently. Yosuke hadn’t noticed when he lived there, but whenever he questioned Souji about it, he’d receive an upset lolcat in reply with a long, rambling caption that Souji took an alarmingly short amount of time to compose.

Souji never seemed to understand the concept of texting without photo attachments, despite being perfectly capable of IMing for hours without sending a single file or photo.

Yosuke had learnt not to question it. The upset lolcats were not restricted to feline-centric conversations.

Currently, the picture on his phone was of an EP that Souji had likely found at one of the various music stores they’d texted Yosuke about. After leaving Inaba, Souji had apparently made it their goal to keep Yoske apprised of recent releases. Yosuke didn’t have the heart to tell them that he mostly listened to the same songs he’d been listening to for years.

Yosuke smiled down at the phone up until he processed the title of the EP.

“Missing You,” it read. Souji’s caption was limited to a heart emoticon for once.

Yosuke’s chest hurt, but he found himself snorting nonetheless. He typed in his response as quickly as he could.

**(16:26)** ur a dork

His phone buzzed immediately. Upset lolcat, he thought. 

He checked his phone and marked up another point. He was getting very good at Cats, Music, or Obscure Inedible Item.


	4. Whoever Takes The Cake Usually Takes The Frosting With It

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a writing exercise where I asked people to send in ships or characters, then I'd shuffle my ITunes and use the song name as a prompt. 
> 
> This one is Yukichie with the song Stale Cupcakes

Chie glanced up from examining the green pepper in her hand, and found herself biting the inside of her cheek in an effort to keep from smiling.

Yukiko was wandering further into the produce section, gesturing excitedly as she talked to Souji. She looked to be, for all intents and purposes, asking them about the finer details of stocking shelves.  

Souji looked to be taking her about as seriously as they always did, which was concerning. They were both huge dorks in their own ways, but they also had the ability to be absolutely terrifying in the name of experimentation. Chie still hadn’t recovered from their mission to test the potency of Greek fire in the TV world. 

Still, Chie hesitated to join them. Yukiko rarely had free time to herself, and yet she had insisted on helping Chie with her errands. It wouldn’t be fair to interrupt her when she was having fun talking to Souji.

Then, without warning, Yukiko took off like a shot. Chie stared at the place she had been moments before, bewildered. 

Souji, meanwhile, appeared to be trying very hard not to laugh. They stared off in the direction Yukiko had run, shaking their head.

Chie returned the pepper to its brethren and approached Souji. “What was that all about?” She asked, jerking her head in the direction Yukiko had escaped.

Souji smiled. “She should be back soon enough.”

“Souji,” Chie said, eyes narrowing, “that is not the answer to what I asked.”

Shaking their head, Souji brought their fingers to their lips and made a gesture as if to lock their mouth and throw away the key.

“Sou–” Before the name could fully leave their mouth, a red comet streaked back into view. 

“I got them!” Yukiko said, eyes shining. “Thank you, Souji!”

“It wasn’t a problem.”

Chie looked at Yukiko, bewildered. “What did you get?”

“These, of course!” Obvious pride in herself apparent, she held out two brightly coloured cupcakes. “Souji said that it was Mr. Hanamura’s birthday, so some of the workers had brought in cupcakes.” She paused for effect. “Including Souji, even though they don’t actually work here.”

“I work here,” Souji objected.

“You _occasionally_ work here,” Chie said. 

Souji shook their head. “I make you cupcakes, and then you say things like this to me.”

“Souji, you work for every other employer in Inaba. I don’t think anyone judges you for not working here full time,” Chie said.

Yukiko cocked her head. “I don’t think they’ve applied for a job at the inn yet.”

Chie frowned. “I think that'd break the camel's back. You’re almost as stressed as Souji is just from the inn, and Souji’s never had to miss school for work.”

Humming, Yukiko nodded. “Fair enough.”

Spurred on by sudden anxiety, Chie found herself blurting out an apology. “I’m sorry for making you waste your day off on grocery shopping with me.”

At Yukiko and Souji’s incredulous stares, she added. “I mean, as an aside. To what we were talking about. Just now, I mean.”

The way Yukiko stared at her looked all too much like a bird examining a twitching leaf. “Why would you need to apologise? I love spending time with you.”

Chie flushed. “Well, I mean, it’s errands. You’re always working, and this is kind of like…” She trailed off.

Yukiko smiled. “Work doesn’t have cupcakes, and it doesn’t have you.” She shook her head. “Trust me, I’m enjoying myself.”

Souji looked between the two of them. “Unfortunately, I _am_ working, and I have to go restock the apples. Have fun, you two.”

“Bye, Souji,” Chie said, still glancing between Yukiko and the cupcakes in her hands. 

“Have a pleasant workday!” Yukiko called after them. “Thank you for the cupcakes!”

Chie called out her own thanks, still eyeing the cupcakes with growing confusion. 

“Yukiko,” she started, after a moment, “did Souji make more than one kind of cupcake?”

“No, they’re all the same,” Yukiko said.

In an instant, Chie was laughing. “In that case,” she said, giggling, “either you lost the top to one, or–”

Yukiko flushed. “The icing is the best part!”

“I can’t believe you,” Chie wheezed. “You licked the icing off of one of the cupcakes? You took maybe a minute and a half to get there and back; how did you even–”

“They’re the same cupcake! It didn’t matter which one I chose.”

“Yukiko Amagi: Frosting Fiend.”

Yukiko began to respond, then cocked her head. “Actually, that has a nice ring to it.”

“I’m not helping you steal frosting.”

Yukiko pouted. “Fine.”

Chie held out an entire thirty seconds before giving in. “I will help you make frosting when we get home, though.”

“We just need to add a few things to the list, then!” Yukiko exclaimed, beaming.

Nodding, Chie reached into her pocket for the shopping list. How hard could it be to make icing, or frosting, or whatever it was, anyway?


	5. Brittle Comfort

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a writing exercise where I asked people to send in ships or characters, then I'd shuffle my ITunes and use the song name as a prompt.
> 
> The prompt for this chapter was Strega and the song was Rather Be

Chidori was the one who said it first, eyes fixed on the single ray of sun that fought its way through the shuttered window. “They’re burying us.” 

Jin glanced up from the computer, if only for an instant. “That would be one way to phrase it, I suppose.” He frowned down at the screen before him. The monitor’s light reflected off his glasses, obscuring the way his expression tightened.

“It is to our advantage,” Takaya said, waving a hand. “They might discard us like so much refuse, but that is their folly.” His eyes flashed. “Let them leave us to our own devices.”

Chidori looked away, a smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. Even now she seemed to take pleasure from something as simple as a plural noun. It was baffling.

Still, Jin thought, skimming the data with only half of its due attention, there was just something about the notion that none of them would ever need fear the pain of isolation. There was something to it that felt comforting.

Not that he’d ever admit it aloud.


	6. Homeworking it Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> prompt: "platonic souji/naoto w/ home setting or smthn w/ nanako pls"

“So, if you think of it as being three groups of two, rather than just arbitrary numbers and symbols, it begins to make more sense.” 

Nanako brightened. “Oh! I think I get it! So, it would be adding two plus tow plus two.”

Souji snorted, bringing tea to the table where Naoto and Nanako were at work. “Naoto, I have seen her homework. She doesn’t have any math problems tonight.”

Naoto raised an eyebrow, crossing their arms defensively. “That doesn’t mean she can’t learn something new. It’s not my fault that schoolwork is often highly limiting.”

Sitting down to nestle into Naoto’s side, Souji hummed in affirmation. “I know. I’m just questioning your choice of a lesson. She’s seven, Naoto.”

“And she picked it up anyway,” Naoto said.

“Yeah, big sib,” Nanako exclaimed. “Plus, Naoto’s really good at teaching, and they didn’t start folding my scrap paper.”

Naoto turned, wide-eyed, to Souji. “You did not.”

“Tattletale,” Souji accused, hiding their eyes from Naoto by using their hand as a barrier and sliding closer to the floor. 

“You ate my yogurt yesterday,” Nanako said, refusing to back down, even as she laughed at Souji’s antics.

“Souji, you cannot tell me that you have been using your younger sister’s homework for origami practice.”

“I haven’t,” Souji defended from the floor. “I used her scrap paper. It’s different.”

Naoto rolled their eyes, pulling Souji’s head onto their lap. “I can’t believe you.”

“Mmmhmm,” Souji responded. “I know.”

Nanako looked at them both, thoughtfully. “They give me the cranes they make, though. Don’t be too mad.”

Naoto smiled at her. “I’m not mad. Your sibling is just very silly sometimes.” They paused for a moment. “Just don’t turn those cranes in for a grade.”


	7. Mementōte Adiuvari

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: SEES "and the story goes on"

It’s hard.  
  
It’s so very hard to walk forward. How are they supposed to stand with their legs folded beneath them like this? How are they supposed to move forward when they have their heads cocked, weight shifted, listening intently for orders, suggestions, commendations that will never come again.   
  
They are off-balance. There is a missing component to the machine, a vital part lost. They try to stand, and it feels wrong.  
  
They stand anyway. They take wobbly steps forward. They tumble forward.  
They do not fall. Hands catch them, pull them up, and turn them around in a search for injury. They have each other. They will not fall.  
  
It is so very hard to walk forward. There is one less set of hands. There is one less voice laughing, commenting, encouraging.   
  
It is hard to walk forward. They take another wobbly step.  
  
They will not fall.


	8. Chapter 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A bit of Sword Refracts Chapter 18 from Teddie's Point of View

Teddie didn’t get tired the way that Souji and Yosuke did. They always complained about sore muscles and lack of sleep, but Teddie wasn’t exactly sure that they’d recognise a muscle if they found one. They were beginning to suspect that even sleep wasn’t the same thing for their friends as it was for them. 

Sleep was scary. One second, Teddy could see and feel and talk, and the next, poof! It was like they didn’t exist. Like they never had. It couldn’t be the same for Yosuke and Souji; they always seemed to look forward to sleeping, and they didn’t much like the scary things, even if they did run into them an awful lot.

That being the case, with Teddie’s sleep being different from their friends’ sleep, Teddie didn’t think it too odd that their idea of tired was different too.

A deep, heavy weight would settle, like Teddie was a cup that was filling with oil. Sleep, then, was like adding fire to a lamp, burning it all away and taking Teddie with it until the cup needed to be refilled.

Teddie could feel the ache of the heaviness increasing with every step they took.

“Yosuke? When can we go back to the inn?”

Yosuke made a sound that didn’t really mean anything.

“Is this one of those communication things Souji said we need to work on? Because either the grunt means something and I don’t know what it means, which means you should tell me, or the grunt means nothing and you’re not answering me, which means you’re being rude.”

“We’re letting Souji have some time to themself for a bit,” Yosuke said, sighing. “So, it’ll be a while.”

“Can’t we do anything?” Teddie asked, frowning. “I don’t want Souji to be sad.”

“I don’t want them to be sad either, Ted.” Yosuke shook his head. “But sometimes you can’t fix things, and you can’t make them better, so you just have to, y’know, let people know you’re there for ‘em. It’s the best you can do.”

“Then we should be ‘there for them’ right now!” Teddie exclaimed, waving their arms.

“Hey, hey. Keep the paws down,” Yosuke said. “You’re drawing attention.” He winced. “I mean, more than usual.”

“We should still be there for them,” Teddie insisted. “Let’s go back!”

“I meant figuratively.” Yosuke scratched the back of his head. “Look, people deal with things in different ways, and Souji asked us to back off a bit. They know we’re there, I think, and hopefully we can figure out how to help, but right now the best thing I can think of is tracking down that stray cat from earlier and letting them cuddle with it.”

“Oh! That’s what we’re doing?”

“Okay, yeah, you’re onto something with the communication thing,” Yosuke said. 

Teddie blew a raspberry, causing Yosuke to flinch. Yosuke always seemed to react in weird ways. “I just don’t get why we can’t make Souji feel better all by ourselves.”

“People don’t work that way, Teddie. You can’t just shut off certain emotions.” 

“That’s…” Teddie trailed off, gesturing uselessly. “Why not?” They asked.

“I don’t know.” Yosuke shook his head. “Sure would be useful, but we can’t.”

“And a cat _can_?” Teddie crossed their arms. “That’s so unfair!”

Yosuke stared for a moment before closing his eyes and pinching his nose. “Let’s just retry this conversation later, okay? When you’re older or…” He trailed off. “I’m doing it again. Never mind. Conversation’s over. Good Talk.”

“ _Now_ can we head back, then?”


	9. Apawtment Living

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: "pls write qpp naoto/souji i am Deprived maybe moving into a new apartment"

“Naoto, help.”

Heaving a sigh, Naoto finished placing their box on the ground. “What did you break?”

After getting only an indignant sound in reply, Naoto walked out of the bare bedroom of the apartment and into the equally empty living room. Souji was sitting crosslegged in front of a tower of boxes upon which Gato was perched. 

Naoto pinched the bridge of their nose. “We’re supposed to be moving in, not playing with the cats.”

“The cats are keeping me from moving,” Souji said, standing. “Gato won’t get off the boxes.”

“Then move something else in the meantime.”

Souji stared at Naoto for a long, silent moment. “There are no words for how much I cannot do that.”

“Oh my god,” Naoto said under their breath, “there’s an order to the boxes.”

Souji shifted their weight. “Not really.” They put their hands in their pockets. “I just can’t really move on to another one until I finish this one.”

Naoto nodded. “Understood.” They shook their head, then smiled. “So, I guess you needed me to move the cat?”

“I feel mean doing it.”

“And it’s less mean if I do it?”

Souji crossed their arms. “She likes you better,” they said, frowning.

“Keeping me awake by flicking her tail into my face is not ‘liking me better’,” Naoto countered, amused. “And where are the others, anyway?”

“Hiding under furniture in an effort to pretend that they can escape the inevitability of change,” Souji answered. 

“Ah. Is that a cat thing?”

“If it is, then humans and cats are far more alike than we think.”

“Fair enough.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Souji has named every cat a variation of "cat" in a different language


	10. Dear Fellow Traveller

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Prompt: "WRITE ABOUT SAKI AND KANJI BEING FRIENDS PRE P4. make this happen"

“Take care of yourself, Okay?”

Saki jolted at the sound of a voice, closer and louder than the murmur of conversation she’d heard down the road. Slowly, she turned, tense and ready to run. Then, all at once, she relaxed. “Oh, it’s just you.”

Kanji bristled, staring at her. “What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Oh, no, I didn’t mean it like–” 

“Ah, no, I gotcha,” Kanji said, recovering from his previous defensiveness. “What with you trying to sneak out of town and all, it wouldn’t be great if someone caught you.”

Saki felt herself freeze up. “How did you know that?”

“Uh, senpai, no offense, but you’re not really subtle.” Kanji stared off into the distance, seeming to be recalling something. “Remember when you threw a fit when we were playing Phoenix Ranger Featherman?”

“I was, like, nine!” Saki said, flushing.

“You screamed at us because Naoki and me kept telling you rangers have to defend the city.”

“This town can go to hell,” Saki grumbled.

“Not subtle,” Kanji repeated. He shrugged. “So, yeah, I was expecting you to take off. Thought you’d wait ‘till graduation, but hey, I can’t blame you.” He nodded at her. “Just… Like I said, take care of yourself, okay?”

 Saki hesitated, then walked over to Kanji. “Thank you,” she said, giving him a quick hug. “You too, okay?”

Kanji coughed and rubbed at the back of his neck. “Yeah, uh, sure. I can take care of myself blindfolded. And handcuffed. And stuff.”

Laughing, Saki nodded. “I’m sure you can.” She adjusted the strap of the duffel bag on her shoulder. “Bye, Kanji.”

“See you around.”


	11. Too Soon

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a writing exercise where I asked people to send in ships or characters, then I'd shuffle my ITunes and use the song name as a prompt.
> 
> The character was Kanji and the song was Three Wishes by The Pierces

Kanji’s young when he first finds out that the world is unfair. He’s too young for the knowledge; everyone is. That doesn’t stop it from hitting him like a blow to the stomach, though.

His mom’s crying. She never cries. Both of these facts are true, and they’re at war in his mind as he steps closer, ducking his head and sneaking glances up at her all the while.

“Mom?” He asks, and he must have messed up because she’s crying even harder.

She pulls him close and won’t explain, and he’s so confused that it doesn’t occur to him to ask where his dad and Hiroshi are. All he knows is that he wants to make things better, but he can’t.

He needs to be stronger to do that.

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Did you know that Kanji’s name is written in such a way that it strongly implies that he’s the second born son because I am Upset about Kanji a Lot and I wanted to write a happy drabble about him but my Itunes had. Other plans


	12. Right Beside You

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The prompt was: "Yukichie- "It sounds like you're trying to convince yourself."

Muku had decided that his one goal in life was to be the largest, fluffiest doorstop in Inaba, and the only way to sway him was to either let him take a seat on the furniture– which wasn’t happening anytime soon– or to place Yukiko in his line of sight. 

Chie wordlessly thanked Yukiko for her sacrifice as Muku barreled through the formerly blocked doorway of her room. The sound of exuberant greetings filled the hall behind her, and Chie grinned as she tossed her schoolbag by her desk. 

“Target secure,” she said, putting her hands on her hips. Then she frowned. That was probably the right phrase, right? Unless it wasn’t. In either case, no one was close enough to hear her. Yukiko was still dealing with Muku, after all. 

Chie heard her mom yell something from down the hall, but didn’t catch it. She started walking back to the living room to ask for clarification when she heard Yukiko answer back instead.

“Sure thing,” Yukiko said. “I’ll tell her!”

“Tell me what?” Chie asked, taking the last few steps down the hall. 

“Your mom wants you to know she’s making nikujaga tonight,” Yukiko said, smiling.

Chie grinned. “Thanks, mom!”

“You can thank me by not yelling in my house,” her mom responded from the kitchen. 

Firing back that her mother was the one yelling wouldn’t go over that well, so Chie just shrugged, sharing a conspiratorial glance with Yukiko, who snorted.

“We should probably at least go over the math problems before dinner,” Yukiko said. 

Chie groaned. “Ugh. Can’t we just relax for a bit?”

“Aw, that’s so nice,” Yukiko said, eyes flashing mischievously.

“What is?”

“Friendship is so amazing; you’re starting to sound like Yosuke.”

Chie blanched. “I– You– There was no need to– Math.”

Yukiko laughed. “Sorry, Chie.”

Chie wrinkled her nose at Yukiko, then bent down to ruffle Muku’s fur. “Can you believe she’d insult me like this in my own home?”

Muku’s only response was to cock his head and loll out his tongue, which Chie took as confirmation that he was beyond words at this offense. 

“Alright!” She said, standing abruptly, making Muku lurch away in surprise. “Oh no, sorry, pup.” She gave him a reassuring pat, then looked at Yukiko. “Let’s get down to business. I’m ready for math. I eat math for breakfast.”

Yukiko grinned up at her. “It sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself.”

Chie deflated. “That’s because I am.”

 

* * *

 

“Ugh,” Chie said, an hour later. “How many problems do we have left?”

“Only about three,” Yukiko answered, tapping her pencil against her textbook. “We can take a break if you want.”

“Nah,” Chie said. “It’s better to get things out of the way now, like ripping off a bandaid.”

For some reason, that made Yukiko stiffen. 

Chie looked at her in concern. “Are you okay? Did I say–”

“I need to tell you something,” Yukiko said, the words running into Chie’s, clashing and filling the room like an explosion. Then, just like in the aftermath of fireworks, there was silence.

Chie bit her lip, anxious to ask, but afraid of the answer. Finally, when the silence had swelled and stretched until it had to pop, she opened her mouth.

But Yukiko was a second faster. “I’m not leaving Inaba. Like I said I would, I mean.”

“What?”

Yukiko looked down at her lap, her hands fluttering for a second before intertwining.“I thought about it, and it seems like the part I objected to was always the idea that I had no choice in the matter, and it wasn’t as if I really objected to managing the inn, and I have people who support me there, and–”

“It sounds like you’re trying to convince yourself,” Chie said, her voice as soft and firm as she could make it. She’d never been good at that, but for Yukiko, she could try.

Yukiko deflated. “That’s because I am,” she echoed. Then she laughed, but the sound was all wrong. 

Chie bit her lip, then moved to sit closer to Yukiko. “You know that I’ll be with you no matter what you decide.” And she hated that part of her was happy when Yukiko had said she’d stay, but she was telling the truth. She’d promised herself. She’d promised Yukiko. She had to be better than the golden eyed monster; it might have been part of her, but she had a duty to tell it when it could take a long walk off a short dock. “But I just hope that you choose the option you actually want.”

“I don’t…” Yukiko trailed off, then rested her head on Chie’s shoulder. “I don’t know what I want. Everyone was okay with me wanting to leave, and it feels like I  _cheated_ or something because it shouldn’t be this easy. Whenever I imagined it, it wasn’t this easy.”

“It’s okay to be scared.”

“You’re never scared,” Yukiko said.

“Okay, you know that’s not true. I know that’s not true. We are both completely, one hundred percent sure that’s a fake thing.”

Yukiko snorted. “I meant that you’re always sure that you’re doing the right thing.”

“Still wrong,” Chie said, sighing into Yukiko’s hair. “But I try. We’re both trying. I think that counts for something.”

There was a beat of silence. “Will you really be with me, no matter what?” Yukiko asked.

“Of course,” Chie said, reaching out for one of Yukiko’s hands. 

Yukiko squeezed her hand, then laughed. It wasn’t quite as loud and happy as it should have been, not yet, but it was a laugh. “In that case, it’s time to tackle problem number thirty-six.” She pulled the textbook toward them both. 

Chie groaned. “Alright, I asked for this.”

“Yes, you did,” Yukiko said. Then she leaned in and kissed Chie, if only for a moment. “And thank you.”

Turning red, Chie buried herself in her notebook, Yukiko’s laughter ringing in her ears.


End file.
